Council Housing

Home improvements - Adaptations to council property

We provide adaptations to council properties to suit the needs of disabled people or people with mobility problems. These can include providing a rail, lever taps, ramp, shower or a stair lift.

If the adaptations are non-essential a tenant has the right to carry out improvements with permission from the local authority Customer Services Department.

Improvements you do yourself

You can make improvements to your home, including those to the kitchen, bathroom, toilet and outside painting.

You must contact your Estate Officer for written permission from us first. You may also need planning permission before you start the work. We will tell you if we want to see the plans or inspect the works afterward.

Any work you do to the property must be carried out by a competent and suitably experienced person. Before you move out of your home, we may ask you to remove all non-standard improvements and any dangerous structures.

If you want to move and you had obtained our prior consent for the improvement, you may be able to claim compensation under the government's compensation scheme for improvements.

Tenancy conditions note

Improvements

4.8 If you move and you have substantially improved your home (with our permission), you may be entitled to some compensation. However you may also have to put back the standard fixtures or fittings that were in place at the start of your tenancy. Please speak to your community housing management team for more information.